Foreign Aid on Poverty Reduction in Urban Slums: A Case of Korogocho Slum in Nairobi, Kenya, 2011-2016
Loading...
Date
2025
Authors
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Kenyatta University
Abstract
This research evaluates the effectiveness of foreign aid on poverty alleviation in urban slums, using the case of Korogocho Slum in Nairobi-Kenya, between the years 2011 and 2016. Korogocho, an area in Nairobi, Kenya that is well known to be among the poorest and was selected for this study because its residents depend on foreign aid and have pertinent poverty-related issues. As the situation remained unchanged even with consistent foreign aid interventions put in place, this informed an assessment of the impact of the interventions put in place. The main purpose of the study was, therefore, to assess the association between foreign aid and poverty reduction in terms of income, health, education, food security, access to water, and sanitation. The study sought to evaluate the variety of projects funded by donors in Korogocho, determine the main sources of foreign assistance, and assess the consequences witnessed in the lives of residents of slums. This study is grounded on the poverty trap theory, which asserts that international assistance can assist the recipient communities to escape poverty, and the dependency theory, which can be put simply as the fact that in some instances, foreign assistance may create a condition where the affected communities become more and more dependent on aid without developing the capacity to support themselves. The study used a descriptive survey design with both qualitative and quantitative data. The target population was 10,581 households in the Korogocho Slum Area, and the sample size was 385 respondents, which includes the heads of households determined using the Slovin formula. For the purpose of targeting the key informants, a purposive technique was adopted, while the technique followed in the household survey was a simple random technique. Both qualitative and quantitative instruments were used, including questionnaires, interview guide, and systematic observation checklists. Data analysis for qualitative data involved thematic analysis, while for quantitative data, it involved descriptive and inferential analysis correlation analysis using SPSS version 25. Specific organizations identified in the study as implementing donor-funded projects in Korogocho concentrated mostly on health, education, water supply and sanitation, and socio-economic improvement programs. The majority of such aid was through multilateral agencies like the World Bank, and numerous INGOs, while a meager fraction was from bilateral sources of individual overseas countries. The correlation analysis further showed that foreign aid boosted household income, health and education, food security, and access to clean water, with health being the most responsive to foreign aid. In understanding the outcome of foreign aid in the selected community, the study established that foreign aid benefited the community, yet the area had some difficulties with the sustainability of the projects that accrued from aid dependency and the institutional capacity lagging in its capacity to efficiently manage aid. The study, therefore, suggested that future foreign aid should support the decentralization of power, build institutional and leadership capacities of grassroots-based organizations, and fund long-term sustainable development initiatives that do not require external support. Moreover, the engagement of stakeholders within project implementation and the increase in effective interventions to scale up are also imperative to contributing to the continued development of slum communities, including Korogocho. This study brings important knowledge about foreign aid’s influence on urban poverty, highlighting the need for integrated, well-directed interventions due to the complexity of poverty in slums. The information gathered can be useful in formulating policy and developing more suitable aid approaches in other cities.
Description
A Research Project Submitted to the School of Law, Arts and Social Sciences in Partial Fulfilment of the Award of the Degree of Master of Arts in International Relations and Diplomacy of Kenyatta University, 2025.
Supervisor
Pius Kakai Wanyonyi